Visual Elements and Photography: Composition and Capture
Visual Elements in Art and Design
We rely on the proposal by Donis A. Dondis. The point functions to identify and mark a space. Two points help to define the basic notion of distance. There are three types of points: geometric, leakage, and attention.
The Line
Two points define a line. It arises when points are so close to one another that they cannot be isolated and become a line. Its two main functions are to identify and signify. Plastic functions include providing depth, separating planes, organizing space, giving volume to two-dimensional objects, and representing the shape and structure of an object. Types include online as an object, contour line, and line shading.
Basic Shapes
The outline is a line item. Types include the square (righteousness), circle (warmth), and triangle (tension). The three basic contours express three basic directions: horizontal and vertical for the square, diagonal for the triangle, and curved for the circle.
Texture
Texture is the visual element that represents the qualities of touch and feel of a surface. It is essential for spatial perception and depth in images. It is an experience of touch but also optical.
Tone
Tone indicates the presence or absence of light. There are many gradations of light, but the means of propagating the image limit this because they cannot capture them all.
Color
Color results from adding a component to the tone. Color is an experience of vision caused by three factors: light emission, physical modulation, and involvement of a specific receptor, the retina. There are two types of color mixing: additive or prism color synthesis (total radiation) and subtractive color or palette (acting as light filters). There are primary and secondary colors. In cultural tradition, colors are associated with a clear legend.
Movement
Movement in a still image is one of the most important visual elements of human experience. In the world of motion pictures, it exists only in movies, but there are ways to create the illusion of moving images, such as comic books or kinetic blur.
Dimension
We feel volume because our vision captures three dimensions, but none of the two-dimensional representations of reality do. The illusion that simulates volume is based on perspective and the use of light and colors.
Scale
Scale allows the modification of an object or image without affecting the rest of its elements and qualities, but it does affect its proportion to other objects. It is typically used for maps and plans.
Photography: A Representation of Reality
Photography is not reality but a way to represent it. It is an almost perfect duplicate of reality. Photographs are valuable testimonies about something that we could not attend. They are a certificate of existence. Differences between visual perception and photographic reproduction of images include:
- Photography eliminates the third dimension.
- It defines visual space through the frame.
- It eliminates motion.
- It creates a grainy and discontinuous surface.
- It can alter the lighting conditions of reality.
- It can alter the level of representation of photographed objects.
- It removes all non-optical stimuli.
To compose an image, one must consider the subjectivity of the photographer, choose the best angle to take, select the type of objective, format, and the main focus.
Image Capture: Analog and Digital
This phase is common for both analog and digital images. It involves the process of photographic image formation and optical preparation. It is based on two systems: the optical system of the camera and the exposure time of the image.
Optical System
The optical system consists of the camera lens. The function of the lens is to project and process the image of reality onto the film installed inside the camera. The focus is where the image of the object photographed is shown, and the film is placed at that point of convergence of light rays. The focal length is the distance from the point of focus to the center of the lens. A longer focal length results in a lower viewing angle, while a shorter focal length results in a greater viewing angle. Lens types include wide-angle, standard, medium, long-focus, and super telephoto.
Image Registration
Until recently, there was only an analog recording system based on film/paper negative/positive. Now, digital photography has cornered traditional analog photography. Therefore, we will only outline the technological base of analog photography. Digital image formats include JPEG, GIF, and TIFF.
Digital Image Characteristics
Digital images offer advantages such as long-term storage, easy duplication, and photo retouching capabilities.